


Rebuild

by DramaticalHearts (kusokawaii)



Category: Dangan Ronpa 3: The End of 希望ヶ峰学園 | The End of Kibougamine Gakuen | End of Hope's Peak High School
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fix-It, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Post-Canon, Slow Build, dr3 spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-09
Updated: 2016-12-13
Packaged: 2018-08-20 11:31:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,807
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8247199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kusokawaii/pseuds/DramaticalHearts
Summary: When all the dust has settled, and peace has returned, it's not only buildings that need to be rebuilt.(MunaSaka canon divergent AU)





	1. Finally, The Free End

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This has been sort of a passion project of mine for the past few weeks.  
> I began writing it after episode 11 of Future Arc, and rushed to draw up rough drafts of the scenes I had in my mind before I watched episode 12. Needless to say, I've had to do a _lot_ of editing/revising since then. ^^'  
>  But it's finally done!
> 
> Writing this was very challenging and emotional for me, so I hope that you will enjoy it as well. ;v;  
> I love this AU very much, and in making this a chaptered fic I'm leaving open the possibility of writing more for it at a later date. It won't be a chaptered fic so much as a connected series of ficlets, I'm thinking.
> 
> Anyway, enjoy!!
> 
> P.S. I listened to only 3-4 songs on repeat as I wrote most of this _and_ dealt with my sadness over episodes 11 and 12. ^^'  
>  Here are two of them:  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYFUqxypkbA  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AR-tVN8v_o4 (don't laugh)
> 
> P.S.S. Since I began writing this before the series ended and I've read no other MunaSaka fanfics, any similarity to another fic is 100% coincidental.

“...I'm always too late.”  
  
The familiar voice broke through the fog clouding Juzo Sakakura's mind. His heart lurched, pulling his consciousness back from the brink.  
  
With considerable effort, he opened his eyes, blinked them blearily. “Shit, I passed out,” he muttered.  
  
He heard a gasp, and he looked upward, finding a shock of white in the darkness. Kyosuke Munakata.  
  
“H-huh? M-Munakata...what're you doing here?” Juzo blinked again, not trusting his sight.  
  
Kyosuke was speechless, his eye wet and shining in the dim atmosphere.  
  
“Oi...say something...answer m-”  
  
Juzo felt himself being pulled into Kyosuke's arms, his embrace. He had forgotten how cold he had become, until he was faced with the warm, strong presence of Kyosuke.  
  
He had saved him. Saved all of them.  
  
That realization dawned on Juzo then. Along with the distant thought that his blood was likely staining Kyosuke's clothing right now.  
  
“...Don't leave me again,” he heard Kyosuke mutter softly, felt the other man's hand clutching at his back.  
  
He heard footsteps approaching quickly. “Munakata-san!” another familiar voice rang out, then gasped. Makoto Naegi.  
  
“The rescue team is here!!” yelled another voice and footsteps. Aoi Asahina. “Is he-?”  
  
“He's alive!” Kyosuke shouted over Juzo's shoulder. He pulled away, looking at Juzo's face. Juzo's consciousness was hazy, hard to hold onto, but Kyosuke's presence grounded him.  
  
Kyosuke's hand cupped Juzo's face, gently lifting it to meet his eye. “You'll live. I swear it,” he shuddered, breath shaky, his eyes more dampened than before.  
  
He looked down. “You're still bleeding...hold on,” Kyosuke reached for his sword, setting it ablaze, then unwrapped Juzo's cut arm.  
  
Juzo yelled out when the broad side of the hot sword was pressed to his arm – Kyosuke was cauterizing the wound. When he was finished, Kyosuke wrapped it again – neater than what Juzo himself had managed – and sheathed his sword.  
  
The next moment, Juzo felt himself being lifted off the ground, and draped across the same arms that had held him. Kyosuke...was carrying him...?  
  
They began to move out of the narrow control room. Juzo heard Makoto's light footsteps alongside them.  
  
“Munakata-san...?” he said in a worried tone.  
  
“Just keep moving,” Kyosuke replied, his voice strained, but his body moving forward at a steady pace.  
  
“He's alive?” another voice said in disbelief. Ryota Mitarai.  
  
They were all alive.  
  
Kyosuke had opened a door to find him, and was still living.  
  
The game was over.  
  
~  
  
Everything was a blur from there, with Juzo slipping in and out of consciousness. Kyosuke made it with Juzo to the medic helicopter, sending him off with a wistful gaze, before he returned to his now-comrades, as they faced what was next...  
  
When all was said and done, the survivors were transferred to the nearby hospital via helicopter as well.  
  
Aoi and Makoto were treated for their injuries, and Kyosuke tried to find Juzo, until he forcibly pulled away and made to undergo emergency treatment for his injured eye.  
  
Aoi and Makoto were discharged early, their injuries successfully treated, and they sat in the waiting room to wait for word on their comrades’ conditions. Makoto asked one of the nurses, who told him that Kyosuke would be discharged soon, but Juzo would take longer – that was all she knew.  
  
And so they waited, talking very little as they both took to reading very old magazines that had somehow survived the global disaster.  
  
Suddenly the doors leading to the hall of hospital rooms burst open. Kyosuke strode through them, a new, clean, proper bandage over his injured eye.  
  
“Munakata-san!” Naegi said. “How is Sakakura-san?”  
  
Kyosuke walked over, a severe look in his eye. “He's in critical condition. They had to revive him when he arrived here. He's in surgery right now.”  
  
Kyosuke sat down across from Makoto and Aoi, kneading his forehead with his index finger and thumb. He sighed through his nose, leaning backward to stare at the ceiling. “It's going to be a long night...”  
  
“You should try to get some sleep, Munakata-san,” Makoto said.  
  
Kyosuke looked at him, exhaustion emanating from his entire being. “Can't make any promises, but I'll try.”  
  
“How's your eye?” Aoi asked, leaning forward.  
  
“They tried to treat it, to restore vision in it, but it’s been essentially destroyed. They tried not to say as much, but it doesn’t look likely that my vision will ever return in it.”  
  
“Oh...” Aoi said.  
  
“I'm sorry, Munakata-san,” Makoto offered.  
  
“I expected as much. I underestimated my opponent, that was my mistake. It can't be helped.”  
  
Makoto nodded in understanding.  
  
“At least the pain is minimal,” Kyosuke continued. “Kimura's elixir healed it enough to make it bearable. The doctors were impressed.”  
  
Makoto sighed. “If only Kimura-san were here to see how much her talent has helped us...”  
  
The hospital doors opened again. Through the opening stepped Kyoko Kirigiri, looking about the waiting room until she spotted Makoto and the rest.  
  
“Kirigiri-san!!” Makoto stood up immediately, running to her and looking her over from head to toe. “What did the doctors say??”  
  
“That Tsumiki-san is a very talented nurse,” Kyoko replied, straightening her gloves. “They did as many tests as they felt were necessary, and they came back clean. All that's left are the side-effects of the remnants of the poison, and they gave me a prescription medication for that.”  
  
Makoto looked at her in anticipation.  
  
“So, I'm fine.”  
  
Tears welled up in Makoto's eyes – not for the first time that day – and threw his arms around Kyoko, hugging her like he would never let go.  
  
Kyoko was startled for a moment, then smiled tenderly, putting one arm around him, and stroking his hair with her free hand.  
  
Back in the seats, Aoi giggled lightly, joyful tears shining in her eyes, too. Kyosuke merely observed them, and sighed quietly.  
  
They sat down together in the waiting room and talked on after that, about everything that had taken place. Midway into their conversation, a doctor came into the waiting room, and told them that Juzo's surgeries had been successful, and that he was now in stable condition. The relief that washed over Kyosuke was visible, his face easing and smoothing in a way that neither Makoto nor Kyoko had seen since this ordeal began, looking at least five years younger in a matter of seconds.  
  
The doctor – who was one of the surgeons – informed them that Juzo was resting now, recovering from the anesthesia, and that visitors would likely be allowed in by tomorrow.  
  
For now, he told them, they should try to rest as well – staying in a motel was out of the question, so, after he left, they sought out the few sofas that were in the waiting room – Makoto asked a nurse to bring them blankets – deciding amongst themselves who would sleep where.  
  
Finding only two sofas, it was decided that Kyosuke and Kyoko would take them to rest on, Makoto and Aoi making do with nearby chairs. Kyoko checked the room thoroughly, just in case, then they lay down. Makoto fell asleep faster than he thought he would, exhaustion overtaking him.  
  
Kyosuke was restless, his mind a cacophony of scattered thoughts. He thought that he would get no rest at all, but when the next morning came, he found himself awaking with the rest, not sure when his body finally gave in.  
  
They were greeted by a cheery nurse, who told them that visiting hours had begun and that Juzo was now awake.  
  
Kyosuke wasted no time – he roused quickly, and was the first to leave the room, Makoto, Kyoko, and Aoi scrambling to catch up to him.  
  
When they arrived at the door to Juzo's room, Kyosuke paused for a moment, drew a breath, straightened his mussed hair. Then he opened the door.  
  
Inside, they found a single hospital bed where Juzo Sakakura lay, the head of his bed reclined upward, watching the provided television – the news played on-screen. Makoto was surprised that he would want to be reminded of their ordeal, but old habits die hard, he supposed.  
  
Hearing them enter, Juzo looked over at them, nodding upward in acknowledgment. “Oi.”  
  
Kyosuke was the first to reach his bed, Makoto, Kyoko, and Aoi following soon after. He sat down in the chair nearest to the right side of it, after pulling it closer to the bed, and was quiet for a moment, examining Juzo, before he spoke.  
  
“Sakakura. How are you feeling?” Kyosuke said.  
  
“Like shit,” he groaned, “but, I've been worse.”  
  
“How did your surgeries go, Sakakura-san?” Makoto asked, him, Kyoko, and Aoi standing around the bed.  
  
“They told me everything went well, all things considered.” He looked over at Kyosuke. “You just missed my heart. Hit my stomach, though. And they couldn't figure out how I was cauterized from the _inside_. I didn't tell 'em shit, either.”  
  
Kyosuke sighed through his nose, frowning slightly.  
  
“They patched up my shoulder pretty good. And stitched up this,” he said, lifting his left arm, which was now clean and rendered nothing more than a bandaged stump.  
  
“So, I won't be doing any boxing for a while,” he said with a hollow laugh. He looked at Kyosuke then.  
  
“How are you holding up?” he said, his brows furrowing slightly.  
  
“I’m fine,” Kyosuke said, shaking his head. “Nothing to be concerned with.”  
  
“Sakakura-san,” Kyoko spoke up. “Makoto told me what you did. Thank you,” she said, bowing slightly from the waist.  
  
Juzo startled, then averted his gaze, his face reddening a little. “...It was nothing. I saw him doing something stupid, so I stopped him.”  
  
“All the same, I don't think we would all be here without you. Again, you have my thanks,” Kyoko said.  
  
Juzo nodded. “Yeah.”  
  
“I'm happy to see you again, Sakakura-san,” Aoi said. “Thank you for saving us,” she smiled brightly.  
  
Juzo shrugged lightly. “I did what had to be done. That's all. You all would have died before you broke all the monitors.”  
  
Makoto gave a nervous laugh at that, rubbing at his neck.  
  
They talked more from there, recapping everything that had taken place that Juzo wasn't conscious for, and what he had yet to know: Chairman Tengan's involvement in the killing game, their escape, Mitarai...everything, their discussion only pausing when a nurse came in to check on Juzo. Makoto and Kyoko did most of the explaining, with Kyosuke elaborating now and then. Eventually Kyosuke fell silent entirely.  
  
When all the explaining and discussion were through, Juzo turned his head to his right. “Kyosuke. You're quiet.”  
  
Kyosuke sighed. “I'm sorry...that I thought you were Despair,” he said.  
  
Juzo shrugged, wincing a little at the movement of his injured shoulder. “I can see why you would. What Tengan said, what I did...why should you trust me?” He gave a pained smile.  
  
“But you're not Despair,” Makoto pointed out.  
  
“Chisa was,” Kyosuke followed, a pained look in his eye. “I still don't understand…” he shook his head, then clenched his right hand into a fist, it trembling slightly. “If you have never been Despair, why did you betray me too...all those years ago...?” His voice wavered, fighting to keep his composure.  
  
Juzo grimaced, and hesitated, seeming to weigh whether or not to answer.  
  
“Maybe he felt like he had no choice,” Makoto offered helpfully. Kyoko shot him a questioning look.  
  
“What do you mean?” Kyosuke replied, giving Makoto a severe look as blood seemed to drain from Juzo's face. Kyosuke shot Juzo a look over his shoulder. “What is he talking about?”  
  
“I don't know,” Makoto said. “Maybe...you should talk to Sakakura-san about it.”  
  
Juzo glared at Makoto, who shrank back at his withering gaze. “Leave the room.”  
  
Kyosuke rose while giving Juzo a questioning look.  
  
“Not you,” Juzo said, then glared back at Makoto. “Leave.”  
  
“O-okay,” Makoto said, “Let's go, Kyoko, Hina,” he said, then they stepped outside into the hall. Aoi's voice could be heard after the door was shut.  
  
“Go to the waiting room!” Juzo shouted.  
  
Kyosuke walked swiftly to the door and opened it, looking down at the three. “Go to the waiting room, please,” he said in a severe yet polite tone.  
  
He then shut the door firmly, the sound echoing down the hall.  
  
“Ah...I think I said the wrong thing...” Makoto said, walking down the hall with Aoi and Kyoko at his side.  
  
“Well...maybe it's something they need to talk about anyway?” Aoi said, scratching her chin thoughtfully.  
  
“Maybe. I hope Sakakura-san won't be too mad at me, haha...”  
  
“You don't have to use bullet points in _every_ conversation,” Kyoko said.  
  
Makoto looked up at her. “Why not?” he said, and smiled brightly.  
  
Kyoko sighed, putting her hand on Makoto's shoulder with affection.  
  
~  
  
After shutting the door, Kyosuke sighed, then sat back down at Juzo's right side. He looked at Juzo, expectant yet patient.  
  
“Well, we’re alone now,” Kyosuke said. “What do you want to tell me?”  
  
Juzo lay his head back for a moment and took a deep breath, gathering his courage.  
  
He put his head back down, and sighed. “...It’s time I told you what happened.”  
  
“I’m listening,” Kyosuke said calmly.  
  
Juzo sighed softly through his nose, thinking through his next words.  
  
“The truth is...I was blackmailed.”  
  
Kyosuke blinked. “Blackmailed? By whom?”  
  
Juzo grimaced. “Junko Enoshima.”  
  
Kyosuke cursed under his breath. “When?”  
  
“When the riots started. When you sent me to find her.”  
  
“What did she blackmail you with?”  
  
Juzo hesitated.  
  
“Photos.”  
  
“Photos of what?”  
  
He could lie. He could say that Enoshima had threatened a member of his family. But...he didn't want to. Everything was different now. What did it matter? Nearly dying had changed his perspective – he didn't want to face death again without having told Kyosuke the truth, if he could help it, no matter what would happen as a result.  
  
It didn't make telling him any easier, though.  
  
“...Of me.”  
  
Kyosuke's eyebrows raised. “Of you? Doing what?”  
  
Juzo hesitated again, his heart beating like a drum. Telling Kyosuke this was something he had never planned on doing before, the thought of admitting it made him feel ill. What would he think of him, knowing this?  
  
He felt his face warming. He hoped it wasn't visible. “Looking at a photo of someone. In a...certain way.”  
  
Kyosuke's eyebrows knit. “Who?”  
  
Again, the opportunity to lie, to get out of admitting this ugly truth presented itself to him. But for what reason would he have to betray Kyosuke, if not this? No one else was worth betraying him for, not even Chisa. He knew Kyosuke wouldn't believe his lie anyway.  
  
Juzo swallowed, clenched his fist tight. He sighed. “...You.”  
  
Kyosuke blinked, dumbfounded.  
  
“...Was it an indecent photo?”  
  
Juzo paused. “The one I was looking at, or the one Junko took of me?”  
  
“Both.”  
  
“No,” Juzo answered firmly. “To both.”  
  
Kyosuke frowned. “I don't understand. How was the photo blackmail? What did it show?”  
  
“...It was me. Looking at a photo of you.”  
  
Kyosuke’s eye narrowed. “...Was it framed?”  
  
“...Yes.”  
  
“I...” Kyosuke stopped, processing his thoughts. When he spoke, his voice was low. “Did you...have feelings for me?”  
  
Juzo paused. “...What if I did?”  
  
Kyosuke's face slackened, simply staring at Juzo for a span of seconds that seemed to stretch on for hours.  
  
Juzo looked back at him, unflinching. He had nothing to hide now. He would have died for Kyosuke – he had to know that by now.  
  
Kyosuke broke eye contact first, looking down with a sigh. “So that's it. That's why you didn't tell me...Enoshima threatened to out you if you testified against her, correct?”  
  
His assessment stung Juzo. “I'm sorry. I just...couldn't. I had no idea that all this would happen...I've never regretted anything more in my life.”  
  
Kyosuke sighed again. “Knowing now what she was capable of...there's no telling what she would have done. If we could have even stopped her. She might have killed us first.”  
  
Juzo sighed. “You might be right about that. To think that someone like _Makoto Naegi_ was able to end her,” he muttered, the old bitterness lingering on his tongue.  
  
“I think we all underestimated him,” Kyosuke said, “even Enoshima herself.”  
  
Juzo wanted to say something, say that he wanted to kill Junko Enoshima himself for what she made him do, but what was the point now? She was gone, and the young man he loathed for being the one to ultimately kill her, was now the one who had helped solve the mystery of the final killing game. He didn't like Makoto Naegi, but...his hatred of him had begun to fade.  
  
Instead, he took a breath, and asked another question, one without anger or jealousy behind it.  
  
“Do you...forgive me?”  
  
Kyosuke blinked. “For letting Junko Enoshima go, or for you having feelings for me?”  
  
“...Both.”  
  
Kyosuke fell silent, looked down in thought. He drew in a deep breath.  
  
“...Yes.”  
  
Kyosuke didn't elaborate, and Juzo didn't ask him to. He hoped that his assumption was correct – that Kyosuke forgave him for both of those things. It wasn't a far-off guess – Kyosuke rarely made a misstep.  
  
Juzo stayed silent, not knowing what to say next, replaying Kyosuke's words in his mind.  
  
“Tell me,” Kyosuke said suddenly. “What were you thinking about, when you went down to the control room?”  
  
Juzo's chest tightened. There was no way he could lie about this. The memory was too fresh and raw, the emotions still palpable.  
  
“You. Saving you. That's...all I wanted to do.”  
  
Without warning, he felt his eyes sting, and tears begin to flow. He tried to wipe them away with his left hand – only it wasn't there anymore.  
  
“Dammit,” he muttered, wiping his face with the back of his right hand. “What an idiot I am, right?” he said, smiling wanly. “I was saving everyone, yet I was only thinking of you, when you'd already turned your back on me. I'm hopeless...”  
  
The tears wouldn't stop, and he wiped them again, when he felt Kyosuke's arms around him.  
  
“H-huh...?”  
  
Kyosuke held him as close as he could. “You're not hopeless. You're hope _ful_. You became everyone's hope, whether you intended it or not. You...had more hope than I did.”  
  
“Munakata...”  
  
Kyosuke pulled away, and wiped at his own eye. “I lost my trust and my faith in everyone, but...you never lost your faith in me, did you?”  
  
Juzo shook his head.  
  
Kyosuke sighed. “I'm sorry...I betrayed you. I almost killed you...it's unforgivable...”  
  
Juzo shook his head. “I already forgave you. Like I said, I don't blame you for feeling that way. I'd doubt me, too.”  
  
Kyosuke sat back down, let out a shuddering breath. “I don't deserve you...”  
  
“Don't say stuff out of character...” Juzo muttered.  
  
Kyosuke reached out, placing his hand atop Juzo's. “All these years, you have stayed by my side...now, I'll stay by yours. This one.” He clasped Juzo's right hand, squeezed it firmly.  
  
Juzo paused, processing his words. He smirked. “Sure you don't want to stay by my other side? I'm gonna need a hand, as you can see,” he said, lifting his left arm for emphasis.  
  
Kyosuke laughed lightly. “I'll be whatever you need.” He stood up, paused for a moment to take in the sight of Juzo – battered, bandaged, and bruised, but very much alive. Then he laced his fingers between the other's, gripping his hand as he leaned down close, pausing for a second, then two. Then he placed a brief kiss on Juzo's mouth.  
  
Juzo gave a soft gasp, feeling his face heat up in an instant of its own accord. The feeling of Kyosuke's lips...it was something he never thought he would experience.  
  
But, this wasn't right, was it?  
  
Kyosuke pulled back, looking at Juzo's expression. Juzo took a breath, looking Kyosuke in the eye as he willed his wildly-beating heart under control.  
  
“Don't do this because of guilt. Or because Yukizome is gone.”  
  
Kyosuke sighed softly, shaking his head. “This isn't about Chisa. She...would want us to be happy, right? To live on, in her place...”  
  
“She would have wanted you to live on, for sure,” Juzo said.  
  
“You, too,” Kyosuke said. “She cared about you.”  
  
_Not in the same way she cared about you,_ Juzo thought, and sighed.  
  
“So, what do we do now?” Juzo asked.  
  
Kyosuke leaned back, sighing through his nose. “Take things as they come, I suppose. I can't make many plans until you've recovered. If you'll have me at your side again, that is.”  
  
Juzo smiled. “You have to ask?”  
  
Kyosuke smiled back, then looked out the window. “What will become of the world...what will become of Hope's Peak Academy...that hasn't been decided yet. There's still more work for us to do.”  
  
“Yeah,” Juzo said, smiling again. A pleasant feeling filled his chest – a sense of hope warming his heart. He had a future with Kyosuke to look forward to now. Not long ago, all had seemed lost, his only hope in the form of sacrificing himself for the only one he'd ever loved. But he'd been saved. Saved by Kyosuke.  
  
And now that Despair was close to being defeated once and for all, their future could soon be up to them to decide, at last.  
  
Juzo had been given a second chance at life. This time, he swore to leave this Earth with no more regrets.  
  
He can be useful to Kyosuke again. And, maybe...  
  
“Oi, Munakata.”  
  
“Hm?” Kyosuke replied, looking at Juzo again.  
  
“Come closer. I want to see something.”  
  
Kyosuke stood, stepped to the head of the bed.  
  
“Closer.”  
  
Kyosuke leaned down, his face close to Juzo's.  
  
Juzo raised his hand to Kyosuke's face, lightly touching his jawline. Kyosuke's expression was calm and relaxed.  
  
Juzo's heart threatening to jump into his throat, he moved before he could change his mind – he closed the distance between them, placing his lips on Kyosuke's. He sucked on them lightly for a moment, and waited for Kyosuke's response.  
  
Kyosuke didn't seem shocked, or disgusted. He lingered there for a second, then chaste-kissed Juzo back.  
  
Juzo relented, and Kyosuke pulled back. A pretty shade of pink graced his cheeks now, making Juzo's heart skip a beat.  
  
Kyosuke was slightly flustered, but composed. “What...was that for?”  
  
Juzo looked down, and smiled. “To thank you. For saving me.”  
  
Kyosuke ran his fingers through his snow-white hair, then sighed, smiling.  
  
“I'd do it all over again.”  
  
Juzo smiled back, and closed his eyes, laying his head back on his pillow.  
  
He wasn't strong yet, his energy sapped from the ordeal his body went through. But in time, he would be strong once again. He had someone at his side to help him get there, no matter how long it took.  
  
Soon, they would walk side-by-side together through life, once again.  
  
That was Juzo's hope.


	2. With You As My Quarterback

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reality sets in as the afterglow of survival fades. Makoto keeps a promise, and Kyosuke has some thinking to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!! I'm so sorry for the long wait for this! A lot of things came up, the running of the DR Secret Santa included ^^'  
> But it's here at last! Bringing a rating change, and a couple more characters~  
> (it's longer and a bit angstier than the last, as well)
> 
> Well, enjoy! I hope you'll find it to be worth the wait~!
> 
> Special thanks to Yasuo_Karada and LaDragonaria for their help with this!
> 
> (Oh, btw, CW: emetophobia)
> 
> This chapter takes its title from [this song.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKuX49QX0vM)  
> Listen to it and just try not to think of MunaSaka. I dare ya.

Juzo Sakakura awoke the next morning to sunbeams streaming through his window. He blinked, adjusting his eyes to the light, and was astounded, once again, that he was still alive.  
  
He wasn't sure when that feeling would go away.  
  
After that realization, he winced as the post-operative pain hit him – he was far from fully-recovered.  
  
He lay back down with a sigh. He hated hospitals. Always had. The sooner he could go home – or wherever counted as his home, now – the better.  
  
So much had happened in the past day, the past _week_ , that left his mind abuzz with thoughts and recollections.  
  
Still, among everything else, he couldn't help but think back to that kiss.  
  
_What was I thinking_...  
  
Fleeting though it was, the taste, the feeling of Kyosuke's lips had burned into his memory.  
  
What was that kiss, really? Kyosuke's, an apology, a show of gratitude and gratefulness; Juzo's, a test, and a gesture of thanks -- and because he wanted to.  
  
Despite his hesitation, at least Kyosuke didn't seem to resent it, though perhaps that was just a kindness.  
  
If that was all that Juzo would ever get...he'd be fine with that.  
  
Kyosuke's heart belonged to Chisa, Juzo knew that. It'd be foolish for him to believe that he could stake a claim there as well.  
  
There had never been any room for him, after all.  
  
“Sakakura.”  
  
Juzo looked up to see that Kyosuke had entered the hospital room with a bouquet of flowers in his right hand and a small cardboard box in his left. He stepped to Juzo's bedside table, setting the floral arrangement down before turning to Juzo.  
  
“Who are those from?” Juzo asked.  
  
“Asahina and Kirigiri. Naegi sends his regards,” Kyosuke replied. “Asahina got these for you, as well,” he added, setting the small box on Juzo's lap.  
  
Juzo sat up gingerly and opened it, then his face lit up – a variety of near gourmet-level donuts lay inside it. He grabbed one, grinning, and bit into it, delighting in the sweet, fatty taste spreading across his tongue. It'd been a long while since he'd had one of these.  
  
Kyosuke closed his eye and smiled. “She offered to get you those. I didn't turn her down.”  
  
“Where is Boy Wonder and his friends, anyway?” Juzo asked around another bite of donut.  
  
“They left. Naegi wants to see his sister in Towa City as soon as possible, and Kirigiri, Asahina, and Hagakure will accompany him along with Togami and his lackeys. I'm to let them know when you get out of the hospital.”  
  
Juzo raised his brow, finishing his donut and setting the box aside before he wiped the frosting and crumbs from his mouth with the back of his right hand. “You and Naegi sure are getting chummy now, aren't you?”  
  
“I suppose we are. Incredibly enough.”  
  
“How did _that_ happen?”  
  
Kyosuke sighed softly. “Well...Naegi figured out my forbidden action, and used it to trap me, so that we could talk.”  
  
“Huh, and here I thought you were immune to Naegi's platitudes,” Juzo smirked teasingly.  
  
“I thought I was. Until...he brought up Chisa.”  
  
Juzo frowned. “What did he say?”  
  
“He--...When I told him that I'd get rid of all despair, even my memory of Chisa...he opposed me. He said that even if Kirigiri had become Despair, and she had to die, he would still have been glad to have met her. That would never go away. And...I couldn't refute him.”  
  
Juzo sighed, remembering the good times he had spent with Chisa and Kyosuke long ago.  
  
“Kid's got a point...”  
  
“I suppose I could ask you the same. If it came down to that, if I fell into despair...what would you do?”  
  
Juzo paused. Then slowly smirked. “That's a little heavy. I just woke up.”  
  
“I apologize.” Kyosuke nodded, a subtly sheepish look on his face.  
  
“No, it's a good question,” Juzo sighed, thinking. “I wouldn't want to kill you. I'd...probably be the last one fighting for you. Maybe I'd fall into despair, too,” he gave a soft laugh. “But, if I _had_ to do it...I would. Because that's what you'd want. But there's no way I'd ever hate you, or forget you. I'd carry your memory with me, and fight on in your place. That's all I could do.”  
  
Kyosuke looked at him for a long moment. Then he looked down, and smiled. “How did I ever get lucky enough to have the best of friends at my side?” he asked softly.  
  
Juzo simply smiled in reply.  
  
Despite the calm tone of their conversation, for Juzo, an undercurrent of anxiety ran through it. The quiet realization and constant reminder, replaying like a broken record in his mind – _he knows_.  
  
Kyosuke knew about Juzo's feelings toward him. He knew, he knew, _he knew_. And now Juzo wondered how Kyosuke saw him now, how he perceived and interpreted everything he said, now that he knew the truth.  
  
This was too fast. They were moving too fast.  
  
Juzo blamed it on the overwhelming emotions involved in his having cheated death; Kyosuke had almost lost him, no wonder he had acted slightly out of character. Juzo couldn't say that he wouldn't have felt the same way, if their positions were reversed, but he wasn't as bold as Kyosuke. Kyosuke never minced words or actions, and he had nothing to hide.  
  
Juzo had always admired that about him.  
  
All that aside, he wondered what he, what _they_ , should do now. How would they go forward, after being so open, so exposed? It felt so...awkward.  
  
Watching Kyosuke, he seemed to be taking a casual approach, one step at a time; playing it by ear, as it were. 'Awkward' didn't exist in his vocabulary. So Juzo decided to do the same: not push anything more, just take things as they come. He was alive now, his life was no longer in danger – they had time to figure this out.  
  
With that in mind, Juzo tried to relax. He'd be lying if he said that he didn't feel grateful for just being in Kyosuke's presence right now, though he wished he could be a bit more useful to him.  
  
While Juzo had been lost in his thoughts, he saw that Kyosuke had been the same; he had fallen silent, looking downward, his smile gone and replaced with a downfallen expression.  
  
Juzo's brows furrowed in concern. “Munakata? What is it?”  
  
Kyosuke looked up, meeting Juzo's eyes for a long moment before he sighed, breaking eye contact to look downward again.  
  
“What were you going to say, before I...did what I did...”  
  
Juzo hesitated. He wore self-loathing like a well-worn pair of boots by now, but it was fairly new for Kyosuke. He didn't want to burden him with any more, not when there was so little he could do to reassure him. Kyosuke had stabbed him with the intent to kill, there was nothing that could change that fact.  
  
All he could do is move forward.  
  
“Do you really want to know?”  
  
Kyosuke didn't say anything for a while, Juzo seeing both resolution and terror present in his eye. He wasn't ready.  
  
“I thought so,” Juzo concluded.  
  
Kyosuke sighed through his nose. “I don't know how this can be so easy for you.”  
  
Juzo scowled. “What, you want me to hold a grudge? Never look at you again? I can't do that.” He leaned forward with some effort, lowering his voice. “Want me to tell you how much it hurt when you stabbed me? Because it did. It hurt like a _bitch_. I thought you somehow found everything out, and that hurt even more...but I won’t hold it against you. I would've died for you then, and I'd die for you now.  That's all there is to it.”  
  
His expression softened, if only slightly. “I don’t think I can help you get over what you did...but you won't get anywhere if all you do is linger on your mistakes.” Juzo leaned back, wincing as his injuries and surgical incisions ached in protest. “Trust me, I know that too well.”  
  
Kyosuke was quiet for a moment, then he shook his head. “I'm sorry. You're right. I won't ask about it anymore.”  
  
“It's fine-”  
  
There was a knock on the door.  
  
“Sakakura-san, your breakfast is ready,” a nurse called from the other side of the door.  
  
“Come in,” Juzo replied.  
  
The nurse opened the door and walked in, a tray in his hands. He set the tray down on Juzo's lap, a selection of bland foods presented there – a suspicious-looking cube of scrambled eggs, a bowl of oatmeal, and a cup of red gelatin. A small paper cup with his pain and antibiotic medications in it sat beside it, to be taken after eating...all _this_.  
  
_Note to self: thank that girl for the donuts_ , Juzo thought.  
  
“Thank you,” Kyosuke nodded to the nurse as Juzo stared down the food. The nurse bowed, asked if Juzo needed anything, and when Juzo shook his head, he took his leave.  
  
Kyosuke returned his attention to Juzo, who was still scowling down intensely at his food, as though his glare alone would turn it into a pile of delectable desserts.  
  
“...Do I have to eat this?”  
  
“You should eat something more than a donut,” Kyosuke said.  
  
Juzo pulled his gaze away from the food to look at Kyosuke, before a shit-eating grin broke out onto his face. “Wanna feed me?”  
  
Kyosuke gave a soft huff of a laugh, then grabbed the spoon. “Certainly.”  
  
–  
  
“Ah, I hope Sakakura-san will be okay...”  
  
Makoto looked out the window, down at the safe zone that was now below them as he and his friends flew above and away from it in one of Byakuya's helicopters. Kyoko sat beside him, and Aoi and Yasuhiro sat across from them, having fallen asleep. Byakuya himself oversaw the piloting of the helicopter.  
  
“It seems he's pulled through the worst part,” Kyoko reassured. “If he can make it through that, I'm sure he'll be fine.”  
  
“You're right, Kirigiri-san,” Makoto smiled and looked over to her. “I mean, you recovered just fine! So I'm sure-”  
  
Makoto was cut off when he saw panic appear on Kyoko's face, his own smile quickly dropping. She stood up in an instant, reaching for the compartment where the sick bags were kept, hurriedly pulling one out.  
  
“Kirigiri-san?!” Makoto asked in alarm.  
  
She sat back down and looked at Makoto briefly, looking green. “Excuse me,” she said politely, then turned away.  
  
Makoto paled as Kyoko violently hurled into the bag, the minutes seeming to stretch for hours. When she finished, she tied up the bag securely and set it aside then dabbed her mouth with a handkerchief, her composure returning.  
  
“Kirigiri-san, are you okay?” Makoto asked, panicked. “We can turn around and go back to the hospital-”  
  
“I'm fine,” Kyoko said, shakily. “I just, need to take my medication...”  
  
“Are you sure? You don't need to come with me, I'll be fine...”  
  
“I'm not leaving you alone,” Kyoko snapped, fixing him with a severe look. After a moment she calmed, taking a breath. “It's just the poison working its way through my body. It's _my_ fault – I didn't take the medication on time. It turns out that the window between doses was narrower than I thought it would be.”  
  
Makoto looked down. “I'm sorry...I feel like, somehow it’s my...”  
  
Kyoko placed her hand atop Makoto's. “It's fine. I just have to be more diligent. If we need to turn back, I'll let you know.”  
  
Makoto looked up at her, a relieved smile on his face. “Thank you.”  
  
“What's going on back there?” Byakuya called in a disgruntled tone from the cockpit.  
  
Aoi yawned, rousing from her sleep. “Nnn, what's going on?”  
  
“Everything's alright,” Kyoko called out in reply. “I'm just having some side-effects from the poison,” she added in a dismissive tone. It didn't soothe Aoi, whose facial expression turned anxious at the word 'poison'.  
  
“Side-effects?”  
  
“It's nothing to worry about.” Kyoko’s tone was curt, clearly wanting to change the subject.  
  
“Kirigiri-cchi! Are you okay?” Yasuhiro piped up, having jerked awake at Aoi and Kyoko's conversation.  
  
She sighed. “ _Yes_ , I'm fine. Can we talk about something else?”  
  
“A-ah, okay.” Makoto gulped, sensing Kyoko's tension. “...H-how about Sakakura-san?”  
  
“Yeah!” Yasuhiro cheered, then hesitated. “Uh. What did he do, again?”  
  
Makoto laughed lightly. “Well...Munakata-san suspected him of being involved with Ultimate Despair after what Tengan-san told him, that everyone was an attacker. Because of that suspicion, he stabbed Sakakura-san with his sword, but Sakakura-san survived it. And then, he figured out a way he wouldn’t be put to sleep after the countdown. So he, uh...cut off his own hand. To get the NG Code bracelet off.”  
  
“Aaah!!” Yasuhiro exclaimed. “Holy _shit_ , dude, that's _intense_!”  
  
“Well, if he hadn't done that...I might not be here now.” Naegi had to pause to steel himself, still shaken up by the memory. “I had asked Munakata-san and Asahina-san to tie me to a chair in front of one of the monitors before the sleeping drug took effect, so I could find out exactly _what_ the video did to make people kill themselves. It...brainwashed me. It brainwashed everyone, drove them into despair. I thought I could withstand it, somehow hold onto hope.”  
  
Sayaka’s face flashed in his mind.  
  
“...But the video was more powerful than I expected. I got out of the chair somehow, and I took the knife that the monitor dropped down...Just then, Sakakura-san saw me, and stopped me. I'm still sore from where he punched me, heh.”  
  
“Naegi-cchi...” Yasuhiro couldn’t help but gape at him.  
  
“Sakakura-san wasn't in a good way, though,” Makoto quickly butt in, as though to change the subject. “He was still bleeding...when I told him what was going on with the monitors, he got angry. I told him that I was going to try to break them all, one by one, but he walked away. It turns out...he knew where the breaker room was, where you could shut off the power to every floor. He used the last of his strength to pull every lever...I told Munakata-san, and he found him just in time.”  
  
“Whoa,” Yasuhiro said, awed. “Sakakura-cchi...doesn't strike me as the kinda guy who'd do that,” he said with a nervous laugh. “Or maybe he just never liked me...”  
  
“I think he did it for Munakata-san,” Makoto replied, smiling sheepishly. “He was the only one still alive that he was close to. I don't think he liked the rest of us enough to nearly die for us.”  
  
Yasuhiro sighed softly, tension seeming to leave his shoulders. “Well, you’re sure lucky he did! We all are,” he smiled, taking a long look over everyone present.  
  
“I’m still stunned, to be honest,” Makoto said. “I feel like I can’t express my gratitude enough…”  
  
Kyoko squeezed his hand lightly, as though she sensed what he was thinking – that he would have never seen her survive the killing game, if this had turned out differently. He took her hand, and squeezed back.  
  
He sighed softly, looking out the window again. “I'm just glad that he survived.”  
  
–  
  
Kyosuke remained in Juzo's room all day, making light conversation and watching television with him as the nurses came in periodically to administer medication and tend to Juzo's wounds until Juzo eventually fell asleep. Kyosuke lingered for a moment then, watching his face as he rested – peaceful, safe, exhausted.  
  
Kyosuke sighed softly. He could stay overnight in his room again – the hospital staff was unusually accommodating in this regard – but tonight, he felt that he needed to be alone.  
  
He couldn't think with Juzo there.  
  
He rose to his feet with a sigh, gathering his things and quietly stepping out of the room so as not to disturb him. He gave Juzo one last, lingering glance over his shoulder, before he shut the door behind him.  
  
He informed a nurse where he'd be going on the chance that Juzo awoke and asked for him before he returned, then he exited the hospital, holstering his swords before he walked out the double doors – just in case. In his mind, especially after what had just taken place, no location could truly be trusted as ‘safe’.  
  
The sun had set, leaving the outside world cold and still. He breathed in the brisk air, refreshing his lungs from the suffocating, sterile atmosphere of the hospital.  
  
At the same time, he listened closely to his surroundings. This was an area that had been cordoned off and protected from the Remnants of Despair, but one couldn't be too careful.  
  
There was a hotel nearby, within walking distance. Heading there, he was once again reminded of the impairment of only having one eye to keep a lookout with, feeling a bit ridiculous as he turned his head this way and that to compensate for it.  
  
The street was dimly lit with sparse streetlamps, with an even sparser number of people traversing it. Most of the populace still didn't feel safe being outside for long, at least not without sufficient protection.  
  
Kyosuke himself kept his right hand on the hilt of his sword, ready to draw it should the need arise.  
  
Fortunately, he didn't find the need to use it, as a few minutes later he arrived at the doorstep of the hotel without incident. It was a humble building, a bit worn down from age and some damage from the early days of the Tragedy - and also long overdue for some upkeep on the paint - but its appearance otherwise wasn't terrible, and it looked well-maintained enough to at least keep him warm.  
  
Giving a relieved sigh, Kyosuke walked up to the door and entered the hotel lobby.  
  
The interior didn't hold much more promise than the exterior had, but it would do. Asking the receptionist - who seemed perplexed by him at first, but quickly shrugged it off - for a room, presenting his credit card as payment, Kyosuke was directed to his room within minutes.  
  
Opening the door to the room, he found it sparsely decorated, and supplied with the essentials. And a mini-bar, which could be considered essential. There was an odd, musty smell in the air, but nothing he couldn't deal with overnight. He switched on the lights, which, to his surprise, were dimmed and well-placed to give the room a warm, pleasant feeling. He imagined that this hotel probably made a decent profit before the Tragedy took place, which was why it was still running even now.  
  
Kyosuke toed off his shoes, sitting them beside the door, then shrugged off his jacket, hanging it on a nearby chair. He took his swords out of their holsters, placing them on the bedside table.  
  
With a sigh, he sat down on the bed. His room was silent, with no noises coming from the nearby rooms – if they even had occupants in them.  
  
He was alone, at last.  
  
At last he could allow the chaos contained in his mind to sort itself out – everything he had had to suppress and push aside just to put one foot in front of the other.  
  
Not only did he open the floodgates of his mind, he opened the one at his heart, as well.  
  
And the first thing to come flowing out: Chisa.  
  
She was gone. Forever. Nothing and no one could bring her back.  
  
And, she died at her own hand. Driven mad by a video made to push her over the edge of delirium, to end her own life in a brutal, horrific way. There was no one to exact revenge on, not anymore.  
  
She may have fallen into the hands of Despair, but...he still loved her.  
  
Kyosuke clenched his fist, his heart aching, tears stinging his remaining eye.  
  
He had no reason to hold back anymore.  
  
With a choked sob, Kyosuke began to weep, unrestrained. He faintly remembered in the back of his mind the doctor at the hospital telling him that they had plugged the tear duct in his missing eye so that it wouldn't cause him discomfort or side-effects later on – he didn't care about that then, but he was thankful for it now. His right eye was unaffected, while his left overflowed.  
  
He missed Chisa so much. He wished he could see her again. See her face. Speak to her one last time.  
  
He had so many regrets. What would he have said to her, if he had known that she was going to die in mere hours?  
  
Was she thinking of him, as she took the knife to herself?  
  
The ache in his chest didn't let up, his crying no longer silent. He punched the mattress in anger – at himself, at the unfairness of it all.  
  
Despair gripped his heart, unwilling to let go.  
  
When at last he caught his breath, from letting out his grief and anguish over the loss of Chisa, another came to his mind:  
  
Juzo.  
  
Kyosuke let out another choked sob, putting his face in his hands.  
  
He had made the biggest mistake of his life. In losing his trust in everyone around him, he nearly killed not only his best friend, but someone who loved him.  
  
Juzo loved him. Kyosuke had suspected that there was something more between them, that Juzo's feelings went deeper than what would be expected, but he never looked deeper than that, never thought it was anything more than his imagination.  
  
But now, it was undeniable. Even before Juzo's confession, his actions made his feelings all too clear – Juzo was more than willing to die for Kyosuke. Even after he'd been abandoned by him. There was no use pretending that Juzo did it for everyone still living – Kyosuke was the only one on his mind. Making sure Kyosuke would make it out, being useful to him one last time.  
  
Juzo had been by his side for many years, even giving up his prosperous boxing career to serve alongside him at Hope's Peak Academy, so that he could help him, assist him, make his work easier and more fruitful. And after the world fell into despair, Juzo served him loyally still.  
  
His only fault was letting Junko Enoshima go, his only failing. But if Kyosuke had known...if he had only known...  
  
Would it have made any difference? Would it have only made things worse, potentially being the targets of Junko Enoshima's revenge? Kyosuke didn't know. There was no way of knowing that.  
  
What he did know, was slowly coming to realize, was that Juzo surely blamed himself for that mistake every day of his life, from then on.  
  
But, Kyosuke understood why he made that choice.  
  
Was it that he didn't want to be rejected, and pushed away? Probably. But, more than that...he didn't want to taint Kyosuke. If Kyosuke had accepted him, even got into a relationship with him, people would have talked. The word _scandal_ was the one thing that neither of them wanted to be attached to Kyosuke's name.  
  
And...who could have expected that a high schooler would destroy the world?  
  
Juzo never meant to betray Kyosuke. Juzo had always been loyal to him, always served him without question and assisted him without complaint.  
  
And what did Kyosuke repay all that with?  
  
Kyosuke winced, tilting his head backward, allowing his tears to run down the side of his face. He heard himself screaming.  
  
How long had Juzo loved him? Had he loved Kyosuke all along? Even through Kyosuke's relationship with Chisa? To love and continue to be loyal to someone even though you know they won't be yours...that kind of love is deeper than any Kyosuke had ever known. Was Chisa even capable that kind of love? Or would jealousy get in the way, like it would for so many others, understandably?  
  
How much it must have pained Juzo, to see Kyosuke love someone else...and yet he stayed.  
  
Kyosuke was that important to him.  
  
_Am I even worthy of his love?_ Kyosuke thought. _I don't think so. Not anymore.  
  
__So what if he's forgiven me? I don't deserve it. I don't deserve him.  
  
__He deserves better than me.  
  
_ Kyosuke rubbed roughly at his left eye with his sleeve. He reached for the hotel-provided tissues on his bedside table to relieve his congested nose.  
  
Able to breathe clearly again, Kyosuke's gaze fell upon the mini-bar.  
  
After a moment's consideration, he lurched toward it, opening the door, and thumbed through the selections. He settled on a cheap vodka, and sat back down on the bed. Twisting off the cap, he downed  a quarter of it in one go, the burn of alcohol lingering in his mouth and throat. A warming sensation in his body followed, as he drank down another half.  
  
Finishing the bottle, he leaned back to catch his breath. He didn't know how drinking would help, but he figured if he was going to fall into despair in some way, he might as well not do it halfway. His thoughts wandered.  
  
Could he return Juzo's feelings? Was he even capable of that? He had always cared for Juzo, but did his feelings measure up? Something had awakened in him, while he was running to find Juzo, that much he knew for sure. But was it something that had lain dormant all along, or something new? What was it? He didn't know. Yet.  
  
Bitterly, he hoped that the alcohol in him would help bring the truth to light. Already he could feel his inhibitions lowering, his restraint weakening. He didn't like to drink, he only did so in social occasions, and it was limited to a glass or two of wine or sake, sipped slowly. He hated feeling not-in-control, or that his strictly-held composure would break, tarnishing his image in front of his peers, so he always would stop just short of buzzed.  
  
“What does it matter now?” Kyosuke muttered, shaking his head at himself. There was no one to impress here, he was utterly alone. More alone now than he had ever been.  
  
Not satisfied with his current buzz, he reached for the mini-bar again, grabbing a beer this time. He cringed at the bitter taste – he hated beer. He drank it down anyway, trying to ignore the taste.  
  
Finishing the can, Kyosuke laid back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. The alcohol did help soothe his nerves. He didn't feel like crying his remaining eye out anymore, at least. All he felt like doing was staring at the ceiling, and letting his mind wander.  
  
Could he love Juzo in return, in the same way? Emotionally and physically? Kyosuke had never questioned his own sexuality before, never had a reason to. He had been too focused on his academics to care, and then Chisa came along. He had idly wondered about Juzo's orientation from time to time, but it was never more than that.  
  
How...could he test for this? Was it a simple matter of self-exploration, through thought exercises?  
  
Or...he could go the direct route.  
  
Glancing over to make sure his room door was locked – it was – Kyosuke reached down to his pants, undid the belt, and paused a moment before unbuttoning his pants and pulling down the fly.  
  
Slipping down his pants a little, his boxer-briefs exposed, he thought: _What now?  
  
_ Now that he thought of it, he realized that his male member had been woefully neglected as of late. When was the last time he had had any relations of a sexual nature? Surely well before the Final Killing Game.  
  
He tried to keep thoughts of Chisa at bay – for her sake and his own – as he reached down to palm the front of his underwear. Pulling out his cock, he focused his thoughts as he began to stroke it slowly.  
  
Belatedly he realized that he would need a...bit more for this to work. He reached out to the bedside table, pulling out a drawer in hopes of finding some kind of lotion, anything.  
  
To his surprise, he stumbled upon a small bottle – holding it up to his face, he quickly realized what it was. Lubricant.  
  
_Ah. So this is_ that _kind of hotel.  
  
_ Kyosuke pushed thoughts of the room's cleanliness – or lack thereof – out of his mind, and uncapped the bottle, squeezing a small amount into his palm, just enough to reduce friction.  
  
If he were sober, this is where it would likely have ended. Or perhaps before it even got to this point.  
  
But as he was not, he grabbed his length and stroked in earnest, as he focused his mind on certain thoughts and images, seeing which would give him a reaction.  
  
Juzo.  
  
Juzo on the day of their graduation, happy and enthusiastic about the future.  
  
Kyosuke's heart tugged at the memory, but no other reaction than that. He started over.  
  
Juzo's body. The effortless strength he'd show while fighting against Ultimate Despair. His thickly muscled arms, his broad chest, his chiseled abs. The wild look in his eyes before he'd go on the attack.  
  
Kyosuke exhaled roughly through his nose. He could feel himself hardening.  
  
He went further in his imaginings, picturing a scene of just him and Juzo, in this hotel room.  
  
Juzo stripping off his shirt. No, them undressing each other, starting with their shirts, then unbuckling one another's belts. Juzo swatting Kyosuke's hand away from his fly, opting to unzip it himself, blushing hard.  
  
_Cute,_ Kyosuke thought, despite himself.  
  
Kyosuke envisioned himself pushing Juzo down onto the bed and straddling him, a deep blush on Juzo's face below him.  
  
Kyosuke felt a pang of disgust, but not for the reason he expected – did he really want to make Juzo submit to his will in this, just like he had made him do in so many other aspects over the years? Kyosuke taking the lead, Juzo just following suit? It didn't feel right. Not for their first time. Not now.  
  
Taking a breath, Kyosuke reversed his vision – him and Juzo sharing a deep, passionate kiss, then, with a determined look in his eyes and a deep flush on his cheeks, he pushed Kyosuke down onto the bed firmly. After a moment's hesitation, an expression like lust seemed to take over Juzo's features as he moved to straddle Kyosuke and lean in closer.  
  
Kyosuke's breath hitched, his heart pounding. It was a totally different sexual position to imagine himself in – in his relations with Chisa, he had always taken the lead, Chisa melting below him and clinging to him tight. To be in the opposite position, with someone the complete opposite of Chisa, larger, stronger, more intense...  
  
It aroused him more than he expected.  
  
Kyosuke's hand moved faster, giving himself over to his fantasy fully. Imagining Juzo's lips meeting his own, Juzo's hand traveling down Kyosuke's body, skimming over every muscle. Kyosuke's eye closed.  
  
When he imagined Juzo's hand replacing Kyosuke's in reality, pumping hard, Kyosuke's own movements got stronger and more frenzied. Kyosuke bit down on his lower lip to hold back a moan.  
  
Before he knew it, faster than he expected, he finished, hot come splattering wetly into his hand. Disgusted by it – he hadn't done this outside of a shower since junior high – Kyosuke quickly reached for the box of tissues on the bedside table and cleaned himself promptly.  
  
Having cleaned what he could – he felt pity for whomever would clean this room next – he tossed the tissues into the wastebasket nearby, groaning when one missed the opening and fell to the carpet. He would get it later, he didn't have the strength to now.  
  
Lying back on the bed, Kyosuke drew in a deep breath, processing what had just happened. His eye widened.  
  
He had become aroused by the thought of a man; not any man, by _Juzo_.  
  
He knew he was attracted to women, physically and emotionally. That hadn't changed. But now...he couldn't deny that he had the ability to feel the same way towards a man, as well.  
  
There's a name for that, right?  
  
Kyosuke clenched his teeth, slammed his fist on the mattress below him. _What a fool I've been...  
  
_ All along, he had the ability to love Juzo back; he just had been too blind to see it.  
  
Thinking back, he remembered times when he'd feel subtle things for Juzo, when he was around, that he felt for no other man. Closer, fonder. But then Chisa would come around, and he would push all that aside, the proof of his orientation seemingly right there before him. But he was wrong.  
  
What society had always told him – that one could only be drawn to one sex or another, not both – was wrong.  
  
That's why he could kiss Juzo yesterday.  
  
Kyosuke closed his eye tight in a wince.  
  
What was he to do with Juzo now? What was the _right_ thing to do? Should he stay by him, and possibly try to enter into a relationship with him? Or, after he's recovered, should he allow him to leave and find his own happiness, his own hope, one that won't and would never betray him?  
  
To remain by his side, even after committing the worst betrayal...was that the right choice?  
  
In his hazy mind, a memory began to resurface, one that he hadn't recalled in a long time.  
  
_“Sakakura-kun...doesn't have many friends, does he?”  
  
__Chisa asked, her expression certain yet slightly unsure at the same time. She sat next to Kyosuke, on a bench in front of a fountain near Hope's Peak. They had not yet graduated.  
  
__Kyosuke thought for a moment, then shook his head. “No, not really.”  
  
__“Mmm...” Chisa mused, gazing upward. “I think he's lonely.”  
  
__“Lonely?”  
  
__“I mean, I never see him hanging out with anyone other than us.”  
  
__“He does have his training to focus on,” Kyosuke replied.  
  
__“True, but...” Chisa said, swinging her feet idly. “Maybe that gets lonely, too.”  
  
__“What are you getting at?”  
  
__“I don't know for sure, but...I think we're his only friends, Kyosuke.”  
  
__Kyosuke looked down, then sighed through his nose. “You might be right about that.”  
  
__“People must see his prickly exterior and get scared off, before they ever get to see what's underneath...”  
  
__“Prickly?” Kyosuke said with a laugh.  
  
__“You know what I mean,” Chisa said firmly, a frown creasing her features ever so slightly. “It's just...when you're not around, he seems so...lost.”  
  
__She sighed. “I think you're his only friend.”  
  
__Kyosuke looked up. “He likes you, too, Yukizome.”  
  
__“He does?! Really?”  
  
__“Mmm.”  
  
__“Well...how about this,” Chisa said, looking upward, a thoughtful expression on her face. “Let's stay by his side, from now on, no matter what. Include him more in what we do, stuff like that.”  
  
__“You wouldn't mind him being a third wheel?” Kyosuke asked.  
  
__Chisa shook her head. “Mm-mm. I like seeing him happy. And he only smiles when he's with us.”  
  
__“That's true.”  
  
__“So, promise?” Chisa said, holding out her pinky finger. “As long as one of us is around, we won't let Sakakura-kun be lonely.”  
  
__Kyosuke smiled, then reached out and curled his pinky finger around Chisa's. “Promise.”  
  
_...To stay by his side. That's what he and Chisa had promised to do, from that day forward.  
  
Chisa...would want him to keep Juzo company still, wouldn't she?  
  
Kyosuke winced, shutting his eye tight, and let out a quiet sob. He missed her so much.  
  
Feeling a tear run down his face again, he decided: He would keep his promise to Chisa. Where that would lead, he didn't know yet. But if it meant that his best friend wouldn't be alone, and that Chisa would smile down upon him, upon them both...he wouldn't mind it.  
  
Juzo needed him.  
  
But, feeling himself sobering up as his body gave itself over to exhausted sleep, he realized:  
  
He needed Juzo, too.  
  
Now more than ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The third chapter of this is already in the works, so stay tuned~
> 
> (there will be more fluffy moments between Kyosuke and Juzo in it, I swear)

**Author's Note:**

> I recommend [listening to this now.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gt8qq4zyTJ4)
> 
> Oh, and special thanks to Yasuo_Karada for beta-reading this for me!!  
> And thanks also to kawaikunai, whose rough translation of a fancomic on twitter for me helped inspire this fic :']  
> ([this one](https://twitter.com/BFish0308/status/779751371998310400))


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